1982: The Vietnam War Memorial, designed by Maya Lin, is dedicated in Washington D.C.

1982: Helmut Kohl becomes chancellor of West Germany. Over the following decade he would be a major factor in the country's unification with East Germany.

1987: Nazi leader Klaus Barbie is convicted of World War II crimes.

1991: The Persian Gulf War begins as the United States and its allies drop bombs on Iraq and Kuwait.

1993: The movie Schindler's List, centering on the real life events of a German man who helped hide Jews during the Holocaust, wins the Oscar for Best Picture, and theHolocaustMemorial Museum is dedicated in Washington D.C.

1995: U.S. Army veteran Timothy McVeigh is arrested for the bombing of a federal building in Oklahoma City. The blast killed 169 people and remains the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil.